Kingdom Hearts: Parallel
by TuxedoGreymon
Summary: As the war between Light and Darkness raged on, a different battle was fought in the Realm In between, in worlds surrounded by the haze of illuminated shadow.


The seas were unusually gentle at this time, rocking back and forth with small waves, the breeze guiding all on the waters towards the shore of a isolated tower. The radiant metals and polished white stone glistening eternally due to the glow of the Realm of Light. The tower was akin to a massive Grandfather Clock on the outside, a golden pendulum swinging in the middle, three massive exposed cog rings spinning on the outside to match with the movement of the arms. At the shore of the beach shrouded in the shade of palm trees stood a man, no older than forty. In his hands to support himself as he stood, a keyblade. Resembling a Four sided key, with each sides teeth resembling a different shapes. One side an Г, another a D, the third a Z, and the final symbol a χ. His hair still raven black, and his square face holding only a handful of wrinkles. Clad in a simple set of clothes, a simple cloak and robes beneath. He watched the sea and tides gently bring things inland… but one thing in particular caught his eye. A raft. The raft had a figure crouched down, tattered white cloth on its back fluttering in the wind. Once the breeze blue a bit harsher, the cloth slid over their bodies, revealing skin darkened by the light's rays and peeled close to the flesh, so tight that it seemed the vertebrae threatened to pierce through. The winds grew rough, threatening to overturn the raft, but the man intervened, lifting up his keyblade and calling out with the authority of a true master.

"Stop."

The waters and winds froze in place as the man walked on the still water and lifted it up, carrying the boat back to shore and resting it on the sands. Time resumed, and he crouched down to the emancipated body's level, searching for any signs of life. Only silence… and then a weak cry. The man gently pried the body away, taking a small note of the body's slight curves and long hair, assuming it to be a woman. Below her was a cradle, within held a small infant. Skinny from malnutrition and crying both for food and the warmth of a dead mother. Without a moment's thought or hesitation, the man picked up the baby, running his hand through it's silver hair, soothing it slightly while it reached out to the air, which the man responded to by giving it his finger. He took a moment to consider a name, and the name came as if something greater compelled him to speak it.

"Hm… let's call you Lucian. You like that name? I'm certain. Now, let's get you something you to eat Lucian."

_Five Years Later_

Within the Clock Tower's training hall were three young children, all training with mock keyblades of their own. Little wooden practice blades that they clashed with. One of them used a reverse grip style of fighting, a young girl with bright green wavy hair and olive skin. A boy with blue slick back hair and fair skin used a one handed fencing sort of style. The last, an boy with a grey wolf head who gripped his blade with two hands, using it more like a club than a sword. While they trained against each other, weaving simple spells and using basic keyblade combat techniques, an older Lucian watched from afar, kicking his legs while he sat on a wooden chair next to the man who rescued him, who's face had grown a few more wrinkles.

Lucian had changed quite a bit, possessing a darker shade of skin, bright violet eyes, and silver hair with a fair bit more luster than in his infant days. He wore a pair of simple shoes, blue shorts with two white lines around the bottom, and a red shirt. His eyes slowly shifted left to look up at his adoptive father as he slowly rocked in the chair back and forth, only to be stopped when the man uses freeze on the chair to extend the legs and lock it in place.

A groan parts Lucian's lips. "Comeon Master Xein! Why can't I train with the others?"

Xein looks down towards Lucian, then to the other students as they trained. "Well… you see, it's because they had keyblade inheritance ceremony performed on them, meaning one day that Vira, Laepo, and Geva will be able to summon Keyblades of their own. The original method for forging keyblades has been lost, so I can't simply make you one… I mean of course I could teach you magic and find you some powerful weapon of your own, I can't train you to be a Keyblade user."

Xein hoped Lucian would simply drop the issue their, and for a moment the boy seemed disheartened… until he thought of something. He looked down at Xein's keyblade, watching it disappear as he rose from the chair to aid the other students with their fighting, noticing the varying problems with their grip and some inconsistency in their magic usage. Lucian hopped off his chair, holding out both his hands in front and started concentrating. His eyelids tightened and he strained to get anything out. The dogheadded boy Geva leaned over and chuckled as he watched Lucian struggle. Xein eyebrow rose, getting Geva to straighten out and get back to work. Lucian kept struggling to pull something out from deep within, feeling the pulsing within his heart… and then his face froze in shock. Twin streams of black and white poured out his chest as a hilt emerged. The Keychain ended with the Master's symbol, dyed black instead of silver, with the a golden ? wrapped around the symbol. The hilt was wide at the base, then extended up straight, making another bend inward to the width of the blade itself. The texture was smooth and metallic, two grey streaks running along the grips on both sides of the hilt, with the rest remaining black. Four silver bolts, all on the bottom of the hilt, while the grip was wrapped in a smooth black leather, a cylinder extending from the bottom to the top dead center. The blade itself was golden colored and lacked the usual teeth, being rather rectangular in shape and thick, with the tip being a flat rectangle rather than an edge, although as it reached the point where the tip of the blade would be it made a sharp turn inward before flattening our. All the curves were sharp and angular, a single groove running down the center. The blade and grip interlocked perfectly, Like two pieces meant to fit together, engineered to fit together. It fell to the ground, pattering against the smooth tile floor and earning the attention of all the students and Xein himself, who's eyes grew to saucers in size.

Lucian stumbled back two steps, before falling back onto the floor, the amethyst of his eyes dimming to the palest shade of grey, his mouth ajar while the Keyblade disappeared, Xein rushing over to the boy and struggling to wake him, trying to feel the heart within his boy. Trying, trying, trying…

_He was falling. Falling through the depths of the darkness, yet he felt no chill or discomfort as he was pulled deeper within. A single light, a mix of colors below, emanating from a glass painting. He saw… two worlds swirling around each other, divided by sea. One littered with black cities lit by golden lights, the other a wide expanse of forest with villages bathed in white light, glowing purple gems scattered across. He slowly turned over to stand on his feet, eyes parting to find himself within the void. Rather than freak out or ask where he was, the boy simply started looking around, searching for any features, finding three floating orbs._

_A voice echoed out without any sound. "__**Slumbering in the depths since the time Darkness sprung forth, light encroaches forward. How will you approach your future? With Vitality, an invincible body which can weather any foe? With Wisdom, a boundless mind which can move around any obstacle? Or Balance, a sturdy body and great mind, which together combined can do the impossible?**_"

_Lucian knew what he wanted, stepping towards Balance, his hand reaching out to the center sphere. The circular platform shatters, and Lucian is sent falling again, plunged into deep sleep. Once he stirred, the new platform below showed the three students circling around each other. Four images showed themselves to Lucian, all people he'd never recognize. The image of Sora blocking the Keyblade of Hearts to protect Kairi, The image of Riku dueling against the the young Xehanort, the image of King Mickey casting Stopza, and in the back, away from them all, a figure in a Black Coat, gazing into the darkness._

_The voice spoke out once more. "__**Choose the path you will wander down. The Path of the Guardian, the Strength to Defend All you Care for? The Path of the Warrior, the Power to Vanquish Enemies with Blade alone? The Path of the Mystic, the Knowledge to Shape the World through Sorcery… or… The Path of the Master. A Keyblade User with Prodigious Abilities which Include and Surpass all paths. However… such a road will oft lead to darkness."**_

_Lucian looked over the three images, initially reaching out for the Path of the Warrior, where Riku was… until he turned to see the coated figure. He started walking forward, grabbing the back of their coat. The figure slowly turned its head left, staring down at Lucian with a single golden eye, a catlike pupil in its center. A black and purple gale blows through from the void, forcing Lucian to raise his arm in front of his eyes in an effort to shield his face. But even as he struggled to press forward, the winds sent him flying off the edge and into the darkness._

"_**An interesting choice. None the three you saw made. Then again… I suppose it doesn't matter. Be ever vigilant, and never turn your back to the Darkness. It may be a source of power… but underestimate it, falter for even a heartbeat, and you will be swallowed whole."**_

Lucian's eyes snapped open, waking up within a white room, illuminated by the sun's glow through a four sectioned window. Sitting in the right corner of the room was Master Xein, who on seeing the luster return to his son's eyes practically leaped up from the chair and to his side, taking Lucian into his arms and holding him close.

"Thank the Seven Lights you're alright! I thought you had been lost."

He then pulled away and gave Lucian a flick on the forehead, eliciting an ow from the boy who started rubbing the spot with his left hand.

"What were you thinking?! I told you it was impossible for you to have a Keyblade, and yet you summon one regardless!"

Lucian pouted, staring down at the bed sheets. "I saw you do it before, so I thought that if I focused super hard it would show up. And besides, I did summon it, didn't I?"

Xein was about to retort, only for a handful of stifled noises to leave his throat, followed by a sigh. He looked down at the boy, taking a moment to consider what he knew and what he didn't. He knew the boy was a native of the world, likely coming from the other side considering the raft and eye color. In the five years he's been around, precious little has been gained by the master from diving into Lucian's heart and scouring for memories. Flashes of a city, but nothing else.

"Yes. Yes you did summon a Keyblade. So… I suppose it's my responsibility to train you, hm? Tell me, what is the name of your blade Lucian?"

Lucian held his hand out, summoning the blade from thin air. It fell onto his lap where he started examining the weapon, humming in thought. But it's name was already known. The words left his lips without any conscious thought as his eyes grew lost in the golden reflection of the blade.

"Moonlight."

* * *

_**Chapter 1: A Heart Lost**_

_Eleven Years Later_

Lucian looked down from his blade, exposing an older face with longer, white hair and more vibrant purple eyes. Skin a few shades darker while a confident smirk spread across his lips.

Geva came flying down with his keyblade, bathed in golden light which empowered his strikes, each blow stronger than the last. Each blow which Lucian managed to block with a flick of his wrist using Moonlight. To an outside observer, it may seem like the wolf headed male was pushing back his fellow student, forcing him into the corner of the training hall room with his own keyblade skills. But in reality, each block and step was leading Geva right where Lucian wanted him to go, until they were backed into a corner. Geva brought his Keyblade crashing down, Which Lucian blocked using his right hand to push back on the flat of his blade. Geva continued to pressure, growling while Lucian just kept his smirk. Suddenly, all resistance faded as Lucian allowed his Keyblade to briefly disappear, making Geva stumble while he himself spun around him, getting to the doghead's back and smacking him aside with Moonlight, sending Geva flying a good fifteen feet before reaching the ground.

Neither were dressed in the more individualized outfits that keyblade wielders traditionally wore. Instead, they shared matching uniforms. Beige sandals, grey hakama pants, and a sleeveless Gi top with half the emblem of a Keyblade master marked in two places. On the back and on the left side of the chest. Lucian lets his keyblade disappear once more, while Geva helped stand himself with his Keyblade. A more traditional type of key, the head resembling that of a wolf with three tufts of hair making up the edge. Lucian made his way over to Geva, extending out a hand to his fellow disciple, only to receive a growl and for the wolf headed male to storm over to the bench.

"Good, good." The voice of Xein called out, albeit age had weakened the strength behind it, much as it has wrinkled his face and bleached his hair. He stood himself up, having to use his Keyblade somewhat to do so.

"Lucian, fantastic as usual. Geva, you preformed great as well, but all that anger and strength allowed Lucian to string you along, then take advantage of your lack of focus. Keep a cooler head in combat, another opponent may not give you a chance."

Geva made a "Tch" before muttering something about favoritism. Lucian headed over to the bench on the side opposite to Geva, while Vira and Laepo got out from their own seats. Vira summoned her keyblade, which was wrapped in vines and had leaves as teeth. Vira's own keyblade was rather thin, having its teeth on the end. The whole thing encrusted with various jewels. As the two went at it, Geva kept a glare on Lucian while the white haired boy analyzed his fellow students fighting styles. Vira used a reverse grip with wide sweeping motions, while Laepo used primarily forward thrust and short slashes, without much outright blocking, preferring parries and repoist. The two went against each other for quite awhile before Vira slid under her blue haired brother in arms, delivering an elbow and making him stumble back, dropping his keyblade as the wind was knocked out his lungs.

Once more Xein nodded, walking over to the two. "Excellent, both of you. Laepo, you need to keep more pressure on your opponent if that's the style you choose to fight with. Vira, overall good performance, but with those types of attacks it's better to move around and strike from multiple angles."

Both nodded, albeit Laepo had to take a minute to recover from the kick, which Xein hastened by tapping him on the shoulder and casting a Cura. Xein nodded slowly, walking off to go heal his pride. Xein tapped his Keyblade against the floor, conjuring a barrier around them all to prevent any early exits.

"Lucian, Laepo, Vira, Geva, no master could ask for finer apprentices. I believe it is finally time… tomorrow, each of you shall take your Mark of Mastery Exam. If you pass… your days of being my students will be history, and each of you shall become my peers as Keyblade Masters."

All of them, even Geva brightened up on hearing that, turning to face Master Xein who simply smiled at his four disciples. The barrier fell, and he gave to his students a final message. "Remember, use all that you have at your disposal. May your heart be your guiding key."

With that, Laepo and Geva ran off to go train, while Lucian and Vira stuck behind. Lucian approached his adoptive father while Vira watched, curious as to what would be said. She took a few steps back as to remain merely a background figure to the two, but listened in regardless.

"Master Xein… are you certain I'm ready? I haven't mastered how to control the d-"

Xein rest his hand on the shoulder of his adopted son. "Worry not. A master is never done learning. You have many years ahead to learn how to channel the Darkness within you. Other masters may frown on your usage of it, but it's a part of you. Ignoring or repressing it shall only cause you harm. Give it time, you'll learn control."

Lucian gave a nod, turning away from his teacher and towards the exit. Once he left the training hall, Vira stepped back into view, following behind with her hands behind her back. "So, still having trouble with the D word?"

Lucian rolled his eyes. "Huh? Course not. I got it down no problem."

Vira grew a sly smile across her lips, turning away and leaping up into the air and somersaulting over him, landing in front while a sudden upwell of wind slowed her decent. Looked him right in the eyes, moving closer and leaning forward, forcing Lucian to bend back just a bit.

"Oh really? Then why are you bothering Xein about it?"

Lucian grumbled, turning away and back towards the training hall, initially not noticing the fact Master Xein had suddenly disappeared from sight.

"Whatever, I'm gonna go work on my magic." He murmured, back into the hall, summoning Moonlight once more. He gave the blade a quick twirl in his hand, before thrusting it forward and conjuring a sphere of flame at the tip. A few streams of heated air and scarlet magical energy streamed off the keyblade before the fireball went flying into the back, hitting the wall and causing a moderate explosion on impact. The white and beige walls of the hall scorched black in that area. He twirls his blade for a moment, taking a few steps back before the haze of freezing air surrounded his blade. He slashed his sword, a crescent of cold air left his Keyblade, which would've frozen anything or contacted with.

"Blizzard Slash."

While Lucian worked on his spellcraft and Vira left, Geva and Laepo were busy with their after training ritual.

Eating.

While Laepo was delicately eating some salad and whitefish, Geva was quite literally wolfing down a steak without the use of any utensils. The blue haired youth looked up slightly from his meal, noticing Geva was stuffing his throat more… aggressively than usual.

A sigh parted Laepo's lips as he places down both his fork and knife. "What's bothering you Geva?"

Unlike Lucian, the doghead loudly voiced his displeasure. "What's bothering me?! What's bothering me is that Lucian, some brat who never got bequeathed a Keyblade yet somehow manages to magic one out his gut walks around all high and mighty like he's better than all of us, and Master Xein dotes on him all the time! Worst of all, it's not even a Keyblade of the Realm of Light! Who knows how long it'll take until he turns on us?!"

Laepo rest his hand onto Geva's own human one. He interlaced his fingers with the wolf headed male's own, staring into his eyes. "Geva, relax. You're worrying your pettable little head over nothing. Xein doesn't even want Lucian to leave the tower. Besides, we have our Mark of Mastery Exam tomorrow. Think about it. You, me, Vira, all Keyblade Masters. Adventuring around the worlds, batting evil, just the three of us."

Geva slowly nodded, responding to Laepo holding his hand by locking his own fingers with the normal headed male's own. Orbs of light began to fall from the sky outside, filling nearly all of them with a sense of drowsiness. They fell asleep moments after, Same with Vira who sat herself down in the hall. As Lucian was about to cast a Void spell, his eyes widen as if something ran him through, even though he was the only figure in the training hall. Lucian collapsed to his knees, falling over with his eyes wide open and mouth slightly ajar.

The only person who remained awake was Master Xein, who's expression shifted from peaceful and content to upset. Heavy heels clicked through the clocktower part of the building, where many gears turned above and the hands moved with heavy clicks, a bell hanging above. Standing at the edge was a figure clad in a dark armor, all too similar to that of old Keyblade wielders. The visor contained within a healm resembling the open maw of a dragon, two batlike wings pointing up. A black cloak over the figure's armor, one hand gripping a greatsword sized blade with the hilt of a demon and guards of curving horns, a single yellow eye in the middle.

Master Xein never turned around. "... Sleepza. That's quite a potent spell. So, why have you come here."

The man disappeared for a moment, reappearing just above Master Xein with his arm crossed over his chest, ready to slash at the Master. Xein raises his arm up, hand bending back slightly as he conjured his own Keyblade, catching the Sword between the Г. For a moment there was a struggle of strength, until a reflect spell sent the attacker flying.

The mysterious attacker dug his blade into the floor to stop himself, pulling the sword out and slowly circling his prey, twirling the blade in hand before holding it with both hands. He ran forward while Xein held out his blade, whispering "Rayga," causing several beams of light to fly forward and dart around in seemingly random directions, although all were trailed on the assaulter. A scarlet aura surrounded his form, and each ray slid off his sword and into the walls. Once the distance was closed, Keyblade meets sword and both were locked in a struggle. Xein allowed his Keyblade to disappear, sliding under the armored male and delivering a flurry of blows with his Keyblade, forcing the mysterious male back as he narrowly defended himself, ultimately losing his footing and receiving a thrust into the chest which sent him into the clockface.

Master Xein's Keyblade began to change shape, the letters and symbols flying off, wrapping around the blade until it turned into something resembling a proper sword, but with wrappings similar to the fabled Ultima Weapon. He pulled his arm back, ready to plunge the transformed Keyblade into the attacker's chest… until the visor shattered. Hair fell out and the face revealed. Xein froze and his eyes grew wide, a hushed voice escaping his lips.

"I… I-Impossible, it can't be-"

Before he could finish his sentence, the masked man ran his blade through the Master's chest. With a few steps forward he forced the man to the ground, plunging his sword into the floor, staring Xein right in the eye. Now words left the armored male's lips, only one sound.

"Ssssshhhhhhh…"

The armored figure disappeared, while Xein struggled to crawl over to the exit, trying to conjure his Keyblade and cast a cure spell. But the blade… it drained him dry of any mana. Even summoning his weapon was difficult despite the Keyblade having no connection to mana. Just as his hand reached the foot of the door towards the light outside the tower… it fell to the ground. The clocktower struck 12 PM, and the bell rang.

* * *

Lucian was the first to stir awake, a groan breaking the silence of the training hall as he slowly picked himself up, rubbing his head. "Agh, what… what happened?" He murmured, looking around the area, finding Vira far town the hall starting to get up with a yawn.

Lucian approached her, rubbing the back of his neck. "Vira, you know what that was?"

She shook her head, rolling her shoulders and stretching her arms up in the air. "No. Didn't feel natural though. Maybe a Sleep spell?"

Lucian nodded before making his way over to the dining hall, finding Geva and Laepa asleep at the table. Geva's leg twitching in his sleep. Lucian smacked the table with his Keyblade, getting them to shoot back up. Geva's head swerved left and right before locking on Lucian, a growl leaving his maw. "Is this your doing? Thought the great and powerful Lucian would be above childish pranks."

Lucian sighed, starting to walk away. "No, affected all of us… I gotta go find the master. We all should, he'll know what's going on."

Laepa wasn't in the mood to see them argue, so took Geva by the shoulder and got them to walk off to find their teacher. Lucian made his way up to the Master's chambers, finding them empty. A faint smile rising across his lips as memories of before summoning his blade flooded his mind. He shut the door before continuing to wander for the Master's usual spots. The crystal garden, the forge, the cleaning supply shed where he hid his magazines, nowhere… then it hit him.

"The clocktower."

Lucian made his way to the highest level that the main stairwell would bring one to. Even from the edge of the hall he could hear the swinging of a pendulum, the turning of gears and ticking of massive hands. It distracted him for just a moment, his body guided on autopilot before he felt a resistance against his foot while walking forward. Lucian looked down to see the cause… finding a hand. His eyes followed the arm attached, and the experience was… unreal. He felt as if he were dragged out of his own body, forced to exist in that single moment in time for a thousand eternities. Outstretched hand, eyes half opened and drained of any life, face twisted in shock and pain, the other clutching his chest, gripping onto a cloth drenched in blood. Lucian's breathing picked up, his eyes grew in size as dread filled his heart. He collapsed down to his knees, barely able to breathe. His hand clenched the cloth over his heart, and soon the other students knew where the master was.

Because Lucian screamed at the top of his lungs.

The other students heard his call from different levels of the tower, a special enchantment alerting the Keyblade wielders of trouble within the tower. They ran to the top and were met with the sight of Lucian cradling Master Xein in his arms, bawling his eyes out and screaming in an agony beyond physical pain. Vira held her hand to his lips, turning away as tears dripped from her eyes. Laepa crouched down to Lucian's level, closing the Master's eyes and placing a hand on his silver haired comrade's shoulder. Geva's hands balled up into fist while his head swung left, refusing to look.

Slowly, Lucian's cries started to fade away. Not for lack of despair, his eyes puffy and dry while his throat was horse and unable to wail anymore. Geva sighed, looking down at the boy and trying to reach down to the Master. "Lucian… He was like a father to all of us."

Geva tried to pick him up, but Lucian simply tightened his hold on Xein's body. Laepa slid his hand under to very slowly undo Lucian's grip, and eventually he relented. Geva picked up the master, his arm sliding off his chest and exposing the stab wound. The dogheaded Male snarls at the sight, and Lucian stood up soon after, staring at the wound. He said nothing.

Vira was last to regain her composure, wiping her eyes. "We… we should bury him properly."

"He was murdered." Geva announced.

Lucian remained completely silent.

Laepa examines the wound, then stared into the clocktower, seeing the piercing on the wall and the crack in the tower. There was a real struggle. "... so what do we do now?"

Vira tried to come up with the most rational response. "I… we need a Keyblade Master. We have to take the Exam, there needs to be a Keybalde Master within the tower at all times."

Geva shouted out. "WE NEED TO AVENGE OUR MASTER!"

Lucian clenches his fist, staring intensely down at his master's body. "I'll do it. I'll leave the world, I'll track down the killer… you three have been training to be masters longer than me. And… I owe him for my life."

Geva almost felt a twinge of respect for his fellow student. "... Tch. Fine. You go."

Laepa nodded. "We'll keep training here, see if the killer is still on world, what we can find out."

Lucian turned away from the three, and Vira felt… she didn't quite know what to feel. She was tempted to step forward and grab him, but everything else got her to remain where she was. He could handle himself. So Lucian pressed forward, heading down to the lower levels of the tower. At the lowest level there was a door marked with the sign of the Keyblade Master. He raised up his Keyblade, unlocking the door and opening up what was within. There were four suitcases, of which Lucian took the purple one. He opened it up, examining the outfit within.

He put on the heavy combat boots, a pair of mostly pants with the legs having the white symbol of Reverence wrapping around, with the bottom of the legs having a pattern marked by black flame. A studded black belt wrapped around the waist. On his chest was simple black shirt with the emblem of the Mark of Mastery on the chest, resulting in a lot of the shirt being silver in color. A deep purple coat stretching down to his ankles, golden dots which can connect both halves. The bottom of the coat had a checkerboard pattern, and the sleeves ended about halfway at the forearm. The back of the coat emblemed with a gold Mark of Mastery. The black fingerless gloves having white X's on each.

Lucian pulled up the hood and started towards the exit, slipping his hands into his pockets. Just as he made it to the door, Laepa and Vira approached from behind.

Vira was the first to speak up. "Luci… you're not gonna be doing this alone. We'll help the best we can from here. Despite how you are sometimes… and how Geva is most of the time… we're friends."

Lucian looked back at both of them, flashing a faint, forced smile while Laepa tossed a wayfinder of sorts over to him, one dyed purple in coloration, attached to a chain. Lucian slid the wayfinder around his neck. He left the tower, the glow of the Realm of Light bathing him. A sigh parts his lips, and Lucian summons his Keyblade forth. He tossed the blade into the air, letting it spin around in the air. It turned into a burst of black and white, re-emerging as something resembling a silver board with large black wing like objects floating beside. He hoped into the glider, a barrier of light surrounding him as the glider flies off into the distance.


End file.
